Improvement in grain-drills



To all whom it may conca-rn @strut @imite W. WEUSTHOFF AND OHRLES SCHMIDT, OF DAYTON, OHIO.

Letters Patent No. 96,064, dated October 19, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN GRAIN-DRILLS. I

The Schedule referred to in these Lettere Patent and making part of' the same.

Beit known that we, W. WEUsTHoFF and CHARLES SCHMIDT, of Dayton, in the county of Montgomery, and in the Sta-te of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements 1n Grain-Drills; and (lo hereby declare that the followJng is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accom-v Figure 4 is a like view of the plate used for holding v the seed-wheel in place.

Letters of like name and kind refer to like parts in A -each ofthe figures.

Our invention relates to a class of drills in which the seed-wheels are expansible longitudinally; and

It consists in 'the employmentv of a slide within the bottom of the hopper, which, being connected to and moving. longitudinally with the movable portion of the seed-wheel, causes the opening in the bottom of said hopper to correspond in length with the grooves within said seed-wheel.

In the annexed drawing- A represents the bottom of the hopper, secured t the lower side of which is the seed-wheel box or casing B, having the general form shown in figs. 1 and 2.

The central portion of the seed-wheel C consists of a short cylinder, provided with a series of longitudinal grooves, at each end of which is placed a circular disk, D, so as to form a series of cups for containing the g In order that the length of the grooves or cups may be varied, the cylindrical portion of the wheel is divided through its cent-re, longitudinally, and one end of each section, o,`is secured to one of the disks, While its opposite or outer end passes through a suitable-opening in the opposite disk, so as to permit said disks to be moved to or from each other at will.

As thus constructed, the seed-wheel is placed upon the shaft E, and one section permanently attached thereto, and the whole placed within the box B, the inside length of which corresponds with the `length of the wheel.

One end of the box B is enclosed, except where the shaft passes through, while the opposite end is providedwith a suitable opening for the admission thereto of the wheel, which is so placed within as that the disk ofthe loose section shall be at said open end.

An angle-plate, F, is .Secured tothe hopper-bottom A, and extends downward, so as to embrace the edge of the outer face of said disk and hold the section to which it is attached within the seed-wheel box, while, at the same time, allowing said section to revolve freely with .the shaft.

When thus arranged, the relative posit-ions, longitudinally, of the loose section of the seed-wheel and of the box B, do not change; but the ysection secured to the shaft, together with said shaft, may be freely moved from one end of said box to the other, and the. length of the grooves within the wheel correspondingly changed. l

Immediately above the secd'- wheel box B is an opening, a, in the hopper-bottom A, corresponding in length and breadth witlrihe size of said box, through which seed is admitted ii'om the hopper.

vA metal plate, G, is'placed immediately beneath said opening, and slides longitudinallywithin'suitable grooves, b and b, at the upper side of the seed-wheel box B, while its outer end is supported and guided by means of a screw or stud.` passing upward through a longitudinal slot, g, in said plate, int-o the hopper bottom.

Secured to and projecting` downward from the forward end ofthe slide. G, is a curved lug, H, the inner edge ot' which conforms to the shape ot' and fits into a groove, d, cut in thc periphery ot' the disk ot' the section D, secured to the shaft, so that whilc allowed to revolve freely, if said disk and shaft are moved longitudinally, a corresponding mot-ion ot' the slide is produced, by which means the relative lengths of thc..

grooves within the periphery of the seed-wheel, and of the opening a in thc lumper-bottom, at all times correspond.

I represents a longitudinal opening in or through the front wall ofthe seed-wheel box B, for the passage. therefrom of the seed.

The upper edge of the opening is straight and horizont-al, as shown in the drawing, while the lower edge consists of two 01 more pla-nes, yi, arranged in the manner of sa\v-teeth, or at au angle with the line ot" the seed-wheel.

The object of this form of opening is to render more uniform the tlow of seed from the box B into the funnel, which result it accomplishes by slightly checking the ow ot said seed, and causing it to pass from said opening at a number ot' points, instead ot` allowingthe amount brought forward by cach groove to fall at once into the ground; as, in the latter case, the oontents of each groove would be deposited in one place, instead ot" being evenly distributed with the contents` of the other grooves.

These improvements add greatly to the eliiciency of the seed-drill, without increasing its cost, and it In testimony that we claim the foregoing, we have hereunto set our hands, this 30th day of' lAugust, 1869.

W. WEUSTHOFF. CHARLES SCHMIDT.

Witnesses:

DENIS REGAN, THos. D. MITCHELL. 

